There’s not a lot of change in a small, tradition-rich wine zone like Barbaresco. The great names are the great names, the best restaurants have been the same for decades, and of course the vineyard land is well mapped-out and codified. But there is a new generation at work throughout the region, and in the case of Andrea Danusso and his wife, Beatrice, it’s not a case of taking over the reins but starting from scratch. The couple, with the help of Beatrice’s father, Domenico, acquired four hectares of vineyards and launched their label, Runchét, in 2012.
Tasting today’s beautiful ’16 from the “Meruzzano” vineyard, it’s hard to believe they released their first Barbaresco just a few years ago: This wine has the purity and aromatic complexity of wines costing twice as much, so whatever these young upstarts come up with next, I’ll be watching. This is textbook Barbaresco, cleanly made and “modern” but also brimming with woodsy aromas and the profound minerality that makes great Nebbiolo wines so readily identifiable. Runchét has come right out of the gate with a wine that’ll age 20 years, and every indication is that they’re doing it the right way, with a natural approach in both the vineyards and cellar. Amazingly, even though only 800 bottles of this wine were produced, we got a small amount to share. Want to be a part of history? Get a few for yourself!
Although they are Piedmontese, and their vineyards had been in Beatrice’s family, the couple also looked outward as they learned the wine business, spending a year abroad working at wineries in Australia and New Zealand. They describe their viticulture and winemaking as “traditional,” stressing that they avoid chemical treatments in the vineyards; initiate fermentations using ambient yeasts only; and seek to minimize sulfur additions. Their farm (and Domenico’s old farmhouse, which is home to the winery) is perched near the southern tip of the “Meruzzano” vineyard in the village of Treiso. This is the southern edge of the Barbaresco DOCG, right near the appellation boundary; the Meruzzano cru, which is also farmed and bottled by Orlando Abrigo, has a south/southwest aspect and produces firm, lithe, long-lived styles of Barbaresco.
Today’s 2016 was aged in 225-liter French oak barriques, so it falls into the “modernist” camp in that regard, but the oak component is well-integrated in a wine that offers up a complex and balanced perfume even at this young stage of its life—Andrea and Beatrice have made good on their desire to make wine “in the most traditional and natural way.” The wine is a textbook medium-garnet red in the glass moving to pink and rust at the rim, with a woodsy tangle of aromas that includes small red berries, black cherry, plum, tobacco leaf, violets, roses, sandalwood, cedar, smoke, and tilled soil. As is typical of Barbaresco it has a finer, more “feminine” texture than a Barolo, but, by Barbaresco standards, it skews full-bodied. It still has some youthful grip that’ll be softened with some time in a decanter—I’d say an hour-plus, after which it’ll perform best served at 60 degrees in large Burgundy stems. It can stand up to braises, roasts, and even the cheese course (anyone still do those?), and it’s got many more years of evolution still ahead of it. It’s an impressive wine for the cellar, no doubt, and a new name to know in high-end Barbaresco. Cheers!
